Cons

Bottom Line

With a modest update, Corsair's K95 RGB Platinum XT turns one of the best gaming keyboards into an obvious go-to for video streamers.

Jan. 17, 2020

Corsair's K95 RGB Platinum, one of PCMag's top-rated mechanical keyboards for the past three years, is getting an upgrade. Announced at CES 2020, the K95 RGB Platinum XT ($199.99) brings back everything gamers love about the original K95—the smooth typing action, the well-placed lighting, the USB pass-through, and dedicated macro keys—while strengthening some of its weaker points, such as adding more onboard profiles and a new padded wrist rest. The biggest improvement, though, comes courtesy of Corsair's new(ish) streaming gear subsidiary Elgato: The XT's macro keys are compatible with Elgato's Stream Deck software, allowing you to use the extra keys as a mini six-key video switcher. These are all nice touches, but shake out to a relatively small update—more of a refresh than a true successor or reason to replace your existing K95 Platinum. But it's a superb buy for K95 first-timers.

How to Polish Platinum

If you're familiar with the original K95 RGB Platinum, you'll feel right at home with the XT. Coming in at 1.4 by 18.3 by 6.7 inches (without the wrist rest) and 2.9 pounds, it's slightly less bulky than other feature-rich flagship keyboards, but still demands a lot of real estate on your desk. It's a full-size, 104-key device, with an extra six dedicated macro keys at the left edge bringing the total number of keys to 110. The black keys, wrist rest, and just barely gray aluminum top panel restrain the RGB lighting coming through from the switches underneath, but also create strong contrast that makes the colors look especially vibrant. It's a bold look, without stepping over the line to gaudy gamer glam.

When we reviewed the original K95, we made a lot of hay about the fact that Corsair sold a variant with Cherry MX Speed Silver switches, a low-profile variant of that company's popular MX Red linear switch. The K95 XT is also available with Speed Silver switches, though I opted for the less flashy Cherry MX Brown to get a new perspective. (If you'd like to know more about the impact of using Speed Sliver, I'd urge you to read that earlier review, linked above.) Regardless of the variant you choose—MX Speed Silver, MX Brown, or MX Blue—the feel of Cherry switches is very much a known quantity (in a good way). You can rest assured that both typing and gaming feel comfortable and reliable on the K95 XT.

One of the substantial, if not especially noticeable, changes in the Platinum XT is the switch from Corsair's standard ABS keycaps to so-called "doubleshot" keycaps. The 104 standard black keys are now made from a thicker polybutylene terephthalate (PBT) material. This should, in theory, make the keys more durable and keep the lettering looking sharper longer. It isn't something you feel when you use the keyboard, but extra durability is always welcome, and since some players go out and spend money to replace their keys with doubleshot caps, it makes sense that a top-of-the-line board would have them.

There are also eight buttons: At top left you'll find a trio of buttons to hot-swap among onboard profiles, toggle the RGB lighting on and off, and lock the Windows key. On the right, above the numeric keypad, are a set of dedicated media controls, an audio mute button, and a thinly textured volume roller. These extras add a lot of functionality—the profile-switch button even lights up to indicate which profile you're using, a surprisingly rare and helpful feature. They also feel good to press, particularly the media buttons, which again are surprisingly rare even among high-end keyboards.

As I mentioned, the biggest improvement the XT brings involves the six macro keys at the left. In addition to being fully mappable with whatever keyboard function or macro you choose, they can now sync up with the software for Elgato's Stream Deck video mixers, effectively turning your keyboard into a mini Stream Deck, which is a huge boon for livestreamers. I'll go into detail about what works and what doesn't about this in a moment, but it makes those keys much more valuable for the right players and content creators. And since the streaming functions are tied to the Stream Deck software, switching between video streaming and standard macros is as easy as quitting the app.

Last but not least, a dark-horse candidate for most improved feature on the Platinum XT is its new detachable wrist rest. Corsair's old wrist rest, which has come with many a keyboard over the last few years, was a flimsy piece of hard plastic that just barely did the job. The new rest features a plush, padded surface covered with breathable leatherette. It's slightly flatter than the hard plastic rest, but is much more comfortable and adds good support, especially if your chair has arm rests to keep your elbows level.

iCue and Stream Deck: Together Forever?

Most functions of the K95 RGB Platinum XT are tied to Corsair's configuration software, iCue. You can use it to set macros, map keys, change the RGB lighting, and create keyboard map profiles that can be tied to specific programs.

The XT can store five onboard profiles, up from the original K95's three, and you can save many more to your PC. For all of these functions, iCue works intuitively and well, as it always has. There are a few processes I wish were easier to find, such as updating the firmware, but those are minor gripes.

One general improvement for iCue: In November 2019, Corsair released a macOS version of the app, making the company's products viable options for players on Apple desktops and laptops. As someone who jumps between Windows and Mac often and has an Apple Arcade subscription, it's nice to have Corsair gear serve as a universal option, especially when it works as well as the K95 XT.

As for Elgato Stream Deck, the software used to configure the video mixing options is also very intuitive, though using it with the keyboard can get a bit finicky. In theory, everything is extremely easy to set up and use. Livestream-related features must be set up in Stream Deck instead of iCue. When you open the app, it simply shows the six available keys and a list of functions sorted by software or platform—OBS, Streamlabs, Twitch, and the like. Simply plug them in, and the key's assigned. (You'll need to link and give Stream Deck permission to access platforms on first use, so it can do things like start a stream or send a tweet announcing that you're about to go live.)

Without fully litigating the utility of Stream Deck—that's a review for another day—the software gives keyboard users access to a whole new world of features by plugging into a set of programs and web platforms not available before. In some cases, you could theoretically configure macros to perform these functions, but most of the time Stream Deck can go further while keeping things simpler.

That said, the functionality is not perfect. To use Stream Deck with the Platinum XT, you must have both Stream Deck and iCue running at all times, which can lead to some confusion. Also, if you've assigned macros to the dedicated keys—called "G" keys in Stream Deck—pressing a key will perform both the Stream Deck- and iCue-assigned functions. There's an easy fix—have a streaming profile that keeps those keys empty in iCue—but it feels like an accident waiting to happen, especially in the harried minutes before starting a stream.

Between that and some other neat features of the Stream Deck hardware, such as LCD buttons that you can customize with images and GIFs, I'd say that the K95 XT's software-based Stream Deck support is a great help for new players looking to experiment with pro tools or veteran players seeking a few extra streaming keys, but doesn't quite achieve parity with the actual Elgato hardware (or another discrete video mixer).

XT Stands for Extra Terrific

Like the original, the K95 RGB Platinum XT is a superb, top-of-the-line keyboard for gamers who are willing to spend a lot to get a lot. With all the bells and whistles you could ask for, including dedicated macro keys, USB pass-through, well-made media controls, and more, it makes as good a case as any keyboard for its steep but not unheard-of price tag.

That said, much of that value was there in the original. The new features—doubleshot keys, Stream Deck support, the wrist rest—add to what was already an amazing keyboard, though not enough that I'd recommend K95 Platinum owners upgrade. Instead, these improvements coalesce to make sure that the K95 line remains an inspired keyboard choice in 2020 and beyond, and a superb pick if you are new to the K95 family.

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About the Author

Mike Epstein is a freelance technology and culture critic based in New York. You may have read or seen his tech and gaming coverage at IGN, Lifehacker, Gizmodo, Variety, Digital Trends, and, of course, PCMag. When he’s not playing video games or checking out new gear, he is probably… asleep. You can find him on Twitter @Bombur. See Full Bio